The Man

This is the man who pulled of a 4.0 (all A's) during the fall semester of 2009.
I am so proud of my smart, talented, and sexy husband!
Way to go Thaddeus!
Did I mention that ISU has asked him
teach a class (in door drumline) on mondays
:)
They start on the 11th!

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Lucia, split lips, cookies and tomtar...

Oj oj, vad vi ligger efter med bloggning!
Hoppsan, så kan det gå när man är upptagen med en massa roliga julgrejer. Vissa saker är självklart roligare än andra. Luciafesten var till exempel mycket roligare än när Kajsa bet igenom läppen på Burger King o vi var tvungna att åka till akuten.
Här är några bilder från våran Luciafest. Michelle Robbins har tagit dessa bilder och var så snäll och delade med sig. (THANK YOU MICHELLE) Det var hon som satt ihop bilderna med. Tur var det med, för alla våra bilder var antingen kolsvart eller så var dom inga bra. vi var så upptagna att vi hann inte ta så många :)
Precis efter festen så tänkte vi åka till Burger King o köpa lite skräp mat innan resan hem......vi hann precis in och betalade. Sedan skickade vi iväg Elsa o Kajsa för att hitta en plats att sitta. (stället var nästan tomt) Det gick kanske en halv minut, så kom Elsa o sa "Kajsa hurt herself" Oj oj, vad är det nu då. Vi gick runt hörnet o där står hon med hela munnen full med blod. På något sätt lyckades hon ramla (säger E och K) på sittbänken o måste ha slagit tanden på läppen. Blodet är ÖVERALLT, och det ser riktigt djupt ut!
Nej tack till maten, som inte ens var klart....upp till akuten istället. Doctorn sa att det skulle gå utan stygn eftersom det var på insidan av läppen. Tur! Vi tyckte hemskt mycket synd om tokiga lilla Kajsa.
Vi har oxå gjort små gulliga tomtar.
Inspererad av tjejernas dagis, Solgården i Borås.
Bakat pepparkakor har vi hunnit med..........dom blev PERFEKTA!
Mums, smakade som annas pepparkakor, fast kanske lite bättre. ;)
Vi fick besök av Lucia den 13:de. Hon kom med hembakade lussekatter o bullar m.m.
Så fin hon var!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hennes tärna hade dock en STOR fläskläpp o mådde inte särskilt bra.
Oj vad jag saknar Sverige under Julen!

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Merry Jul, and Gott New År!

Here is our infamous Christmas Card.
Hope you all enjoy. We wish you all Happy Holidays! To all of our family and friends abroad, we miss you!

Enjoy!


If anyone wants to check out 2008, 2007, 2006 just click on the respective year. It's amazing to see how much the girls have grown over the years.

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Välkommen Första Advent

I have been looking forward to Första Advent a lot this year. Possibly more so than other years just because it's Swedish and we're not in Sweden anymore. Of course, it's not that easy to go to the store and just pick up an adventstake. BUT, I have connections. Remember Cole, the one who built Elsa's shelf? Well, he helped me out again. He literally threw this together in about 20 minutes with scrap pieces laying around in the garage! He is amazing and it looks SO good. The moss, candles and trinkets (apple spice pot pourri) are all complements of Wal *Mart!
I am quite excited to light it tomorrow.

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Let the light shine forth

Today the electricity went out around 12.30 p.m. and didn't get fixed until almost 8.30 p.m. Crazy!

Luckily we celebrated Thanksgiving at great grandpa and grandma Ferrins in town. I feel really bad for all the people out here in Groveland who had turkey's and rolls and who knows what in their ovens when the power went.

Either way, electricity is a super cool thing to be thankful for. Although, I must say it is quite cozy sitting in the dark talking and having fun with family. I had a great thanksgiving. First real one since 2002!

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The best girls!

Kajsa going on five!

What will become of her? She is such a wild stubborn härlig girl. She has a great imagination and I won't be surprised if she surprises us when she becomes an adult. She doesn't give up easily and is not easy to fool. Once she has a goal she finds a way to meet it. She keeps me laughing all day long. I love to kiss her freckles and comb her red hair. She is so super spunky and perfect in every way.

Elsa, going on seven!

The older, also perfect daughter. What will she become? Today she sat and held Kajsa in her arms and kissed her cheek while she took a nap. Elsa is such a mini mamma. I can imagine her having lots of kids. She LOVES to play the mothering role. Elsa is doing so well in school. Her english is getting better and better every day. She is already ahead in the reading and the teacher just moved her up to the advanced math class!

My children make me proud and happy everyday. I am so glad that I get to be a mommie. I often wonder who they will become and what they will want, or do with their lives when they are adults. Time goes by so fast. I am looking forward to having teenage, and even adult, children. At the same time I am sad that the young age is passing so quickly. It seems I just cannot get enough cuddling and hugging in.

I hope someday that we can have more kids, whether it be our own, adoptive, or foster kids.

I am thankful for my two beautiful,

bright babies.

I am anxiously anticipating the future,

what it will bring and what you will create with it.

I will always love you!

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What I'm thankful for everyday, but often hesitate to express on my blog!

Courage is what it takes to stand up to others
Courage is what it takes to make your own decisions
Courage is what it takes to succeed
But it also takes courage to sit down and listen
It also takes courage to admit a loss
It will take courage to respect someone others don't
Courage is needed to withstand peer pressure

So what does this mean?
Courage is essential in your journey through life.

Hanson Chen

I'd like to share something I am very thankful for every single day. I often feel I can't share this with others because I fear I may offend them. So to those members of the LDS church, this is not my intent.

These are my feelings and beliefs!

I have a LOT of LDS friends and family members whom I love and respect. I recieve LDS forwards and emails and read a lot of blog posts that are about or related to the LDS faith. I am not offended, but it bothers me a little that when I mention how I feel about the religion I often am told I am attacking them.
How can this be, are religous people free to preach all they want? Of course they are, but so am I. I am FREE to share what I believe and how I feel. (at least on my own blog) I believe that the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is a scam. I really, truely, and honestly do believe this.
With all my heart.

I do believe that there are many good things that the church teach and practice, for instance: charity work, FHE, youth groups and activities. There are lots of good things about the church. YES!

This is true, and that is great.
But I do not believe that these things make the church true. Nor does the church have a patent on these things either!

When I was a member I often tried to excuse the church or it's teaching by saying to myself that it's the fundamentalist that think this way or that. But there is no way around it. The church is much to young to hide it's hideous past. The founding leaders have too much dirt and blood on their hands to hide! The church teach it's members only to read church material...why would you teach this? If it's true it will stand up to scrutiny.
But it doesn't.

And it's not true.
It wasn't so called "ANTI MORMON" doctrine that made me think twice about the church. It was my gut feelings that finally demanded I get to the bottom of things. If was the fact that the church is a judgmental church! Love and kindness and peace will never be enough for them. You need to follow every rule that they make up even when they are racial, discrimanatory or wrong to be considered a faithful member.
Blacks not recieving the preisthood until 1978 for instance. Gays being stripped of their marital rights by prop 8. Will it really have to go so far as the government stepping in and demanding they stop discriminating? (The church teaches that AGENCY is so important, but would seek to strip others of it.) Plural marriage....does a member of the church even take the time to find out what the early prophets taught and said about this practice. (Ever heard of the journal of discourse? It is church material...but hard to come by these days, wonder why???) I think a lot of them don't because they don't want to know......BECAUSE then they might actually have to deal with it. I know that is how I felt a lot of times. I tried to put my gut feelings away for a long time, and I do mean a long time.

The church has inplanted a clever little tool called GUILT, deep, deep in it's members. From the time they are born they are taught that when you question the church it is shameful and of the devil. This is bizzare to me.

And sick!

TRUTH and FACTS are not bad things, they just are. I felt that it was wrong for me to indoctrinate my children. It felt to me like I was brainwashing them. I do not want my children to ever feel they have to earn my love or loose it because of their choice of or no choice of religion. I do not believe it is my place to make my daughters believe or not believe in a divine being.

BECAUSE I DO NOT KNOW!

No one does. You are not better than me and I'm not better that you. The fact stays the same, there is no real proof that there is a GOD even. I think it would be a pleasant surprise if there was one, but really, I don't believe there is one. Why would he let so many of his childred suffer? If there is a GOD, is he going to punish me because I didn't pretend that he exsisted? Maybe, and in that case, I don't think I'd like to be in such a persons presence anyway.

I am honest. I am not a bad person because of this, I have not lost my soul. Staying in the church after what I had discovered would have been WRONG, at least for me. Bringing my children up under the illusion that I "knew the church is ture with every fiber of my being" would be wrong in my eyes. Religion, in general, is a very intricate topic and I don't think you can make clear or smart decisions about them until you are an adult.
The church, in my eyes, is full of peer pressure and neglecting your intellect and embracing superstition.

I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT ALL MORMONS ARE FULL OF THESE THINGS.

There is a big difference. I believe there are MANY, MANY great LDS people, but I believe that the religion (teachings, scriptures, prophets..etc) is not true and that it is there that the problem lies. The religion is built upon a lie, to put it simply and straight to the point. I am glad that I can express myself about these thing and not feel ashamed or guilty. It is a wonderful free feeling.
I am not upset with my mother for bringing me up in the church. She was doing what she thought was right. How can I blame her?

I feel that I have learned A LOT from the church. I have learned many lessons and grown from them. It has in many ways shaped who I am and who I am not, and for that I am thankful. Mostly I am thankful that I left it when I did and not a minute later. It makes me sad to know there are so many members out there who feel like I did. Don't get me wrong, I was not always miserable. But the authenticity of the church was a recuring topic that I could not shake. I could push is away for months at a time and do just fine focusing on my callings and the wonderful kids in primary.........but the truth was always there and at last it caught up to me when my kids started getting bigger.

It was time to deal with it.

I am happy and thankful that I was able to deal with it in a healthy manner and move on to better things. There are many who get depressed and even those who commit suicide after their families and wards disown them. We were in Sweden when we decided to have our records removed. Our ward in Borås Sweden was filled with wonderful, caring people. Many of whom I think about often. They in no way acted badly or inappropriate.

In short I'd like to just say I am thankful that I am not a member of the church. This is not meant to be an attack, this is something I truly am thankful for

EVERY SINGLE DAY!

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I'm thankful

for the couch. I am usually not a big fan of sitting on the couch and watching t.v. In fact anyone that knows we well, knows I HATE wasting time in front of the t.v.
These last couple of days have been very different as I am still sick as ever and I don't have the energy to be on my feet. It is very lonely downstairs in bed, so for once, I love the couch. And since this is Idaho, I thought this pic was appropriate.

I'm also thankful for left overs, tissue paper to blow my nose, and nyquill that tastes like jägermeister to knock me out at night. Read more!

Health care Reform!

I just watched some dumb ass republican go off about how health care reform will destroy the USA health care system.
Really?

He said.........no, I'll just post it so you can hear for yourself!



First of all: I just have to say, what kind of a sick selfish ass really wants to keep people from getting health care. Americans have no clue how different and fair health care can be. They don't, because they are selfish and IGNORANT! If they would care to even look at other countries they'd learn a whole lot. Yes, you might have to stand in line.....but then the ones who need help the most will get it first as well. It's called sacrifice! Ever heard of it?

PLUS, if you're as rich as a lot of these selfish people are, they're rich enough to buy their own private health care anyway and they can go to their own "special" doctors. If doctors get paid a normal good wadge then maybe all the jerks who don't even care about people but who just go into it for the money would get weeded out.

The thing that bothers me the VERY most, and this is just because I'm an ex mormon, is that so many LDS in this region (Idaho, Utah..etc) are SOOOOO against a reformed health care. God forbid I have to pay more taxes so the poor mexican's kid next door gets to go to the doctor when they need to.

REALLY? WTF?

Have I forgotten everything about the church, I think not. It was the church that taught about the law of consecration was it not. And the law of consecration was not just paying a little more in taxes, it was giving EVERYTHING you had and then getting only what you need.

AKA -communism.

This health care reform is not even close, but still the same idea to an extent, giving a little and getting help when you really need it. And mostley, FOR THE PEOPLE WHO CAN'T AFFORD IT. How can a person see something bad with giving, to help someone else. Yes yes, I realize that a lot of republicans are upset because there are soooo many illegals. Yes there are. SO WHAT? A person is a person, is a person, is a person. Just because they happened to be born in bad conditions and have taken themselves out if it as good as they can does not mean that they should suffer because they are poor. Everyone feels pain, it doesn't hurt more or less depending on what color of skin you have or where you were born. PEOPLE are important.
I STRONGLY believe that health care should be available for EVERYONE. Period, and if I can pay a little more taxes then I'd LOVE to.
The myth that health care gets worse when it's not private is blown WAY out of proportion, look it up for yourself!


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/21/AR2009082101778.html
If you don't have the pacience to read the whole thing, go to page three, where she kind of summarizes and makes some good points.


http://www.photius.com/rankings/

http://www.allcountries.org/ranks/preventable_deaths_country_ranks_1997-1998_2002-2003_2008.html

http://www.photius.com/rankings/healthy_life_table2.html Read more!

Sick Joy

I am thankful that I have not been sick since we moved here. I've had the occational sore throat....but up until now I haven't had anything terrible. NOW, I am sick for real. My lungs BURN.... It feels like I have been outside running in the cold without clothes on. Ever ran farther than you really should have and get the nasty burning sensation at the top of your lungs?

That's what I have.

And I have the little nasty green monsters visiting me that like to be coughed up. Plus body aches. Yes, I am feeling sorry for myself. I am the only one in the family without insurance as well, plus I'm the one trying to support us on my pathetic wadge. Grrrr, being sick does not fit into my schedule right now.

I had three appointments booked for tomorrow as well, all of which I am going to have to cancel :( But like I said, I am thankful that this is the first time I've gotten REALLY sick in six months or maybe even more! Hence this is my thanks post for the day.

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Scary Night!

I just have to share what happened to me last night. Thad and the girls were in Rexburg. I have been reading this criminal murder story book................I layed in bed for over and hour reading it. I'm soooo close to finishing, so you can emagine that it's pretty intense. Anyway, I fell alseep sometime around eleven. Then all of a sudden I wake up to the sound of music???

What?

I'm still dreaming.....I put music on on my cell phone, then my head starts to get clearer.
NO NO, I can hear music...quite loud and clear. I'm fully awake now! It's Josh Groban singing his heart out. What the hell? I'm the ONLY person in the house. So I get up, and find that Kajsa's cd player is on. It's playing this song:



I look around, Kajsa's room is a dissaster, toys ALL OVER THE PLACE, on the bed and floor...her pillow is missing. Her room is SUPER cold. I'm a little freaked out. I hadn't checked her room before I went to bed...but if the girls are home (like a normal day) We always clean up before we go to bed, always, ALWAYS. For a second I had the thought, someone has been in here looking for something. Someone is messing with me.
AHHHHHHH!
Then I calm myself down and figure out that somehow Kajsa had turned on the alarm...and of course midnight is the time that it auto sets to. Scary! So I turn off the cd player and crawl back into bed and talk myself into chilling out.

Why? Why on a night when I'm ALL ALONE. The alarm on her cd player has actually gone off ONCE before and that was when I ran inside to grab something downstairs and everyone else was waiting in the car!!!!

Yikes...does this make me a believer?
Nawwww

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Saturdays!

I had never heard this song before but when I searched youtube for SATURDAY(s) ...this is what I found. I was going to say I am THANKFUL it is finally Saturday evening and WORK is done for the week.

Ahhhhhhhhh!

p.s. I was thankful this morning when I stepped on the scale....

Anja: Snygg jeansrumpa???? Hahahaha, tror jag inte!

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Friday

1. Today I am thankful that I didn't go over to little caesars and buy their Italian cheese bread sticks. I did that yesterday and ate the whole thing by myself and made myself sick. I wanted to go and get some SOOOOOO badly today. (Our store is RIGHT NEXT DOOR to little caesars) Every time a customer walks in the door all I smell is pizza and bread sticks. It is torture. BUT, today I stood against the temptation! I am proud of myself and tomorrow morning when I step on the scale I will be thankful :) p.s. This picture doesn't do them justice, they are so delicious it is CRAZY!

2. I'm thankful that my hubby is such a sweet guy. Tonight he took the girls with him and is spending the night at Matt and Sarah's in Rexburg cause tomorrow morning he and Matt are going to put in a new floor board thingy stuff in mom's house! Someone commented,...I can't remember who it was, "My husband would never go over and spend the night with my family alone" Hmmmm, I guess I never even thought about it. Either way, Thad is such a sweet guy. Tomorrow is his first day of his week long Thanksgiving break and he's starting it out by helping my mommie.

I love you Thad!

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Thanks

1. Today I'm thankful that there is a washer and dryer in the house and that we don't have to go to "tvättstugan" to do it. We just discovered that all the girls pants are dirty! The laundry is in the machine. Although if we ever move out on our own I am sure I will be wishing there was a "tvättstuga" in the basement since we are too poor to buy our own washer and dryer ;) hahaha go figure!

2. I am thankful that is was slow at work for the last hour tonight, I had all my closing chores done and actually locked the place up right on time at 8 p.m. Sweet Joy! It is nice coming home after a 12 hour work day. Read more!

Wednesday Thanks

1. Spray Tans. I just got one and they're so much fun. I should upload a picture so you can all see. Oh well. For anyone that doesn't know by now, I work at a tanning salon in Blackfoot. I give spray tans (tan envy custom sprays) and do the body wraps along side massages. I also work the front desk when appointments are slow. It is GREAT to be able to benifit from our treatments for free. Just a tanning membership for a year costs 189 dollars....not to mention all the upgrades I use that I get free. If you've never had a spray tan, come and try one. Infact they are on special tomorrow and on Saturday!

Buy one get one half off!!!!

Did I mention they look GREAT!

2. A good book. I am reading a book right now and it's getting better and better. There's nothing like a good book! I love the feeling of wanting to read as soon as you have a moment over.

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Thanx

1. Today I'd like to tell you all about our pet cow. We haven't named it yet, but there is a cute little (not so little anymore actually) brown calf that comes into our yard ALL the time. Thaddeus and I noticed several months ago that this same little calf keeps getting out. It likes to hang out in our front yard! I have actually seen the little guy when he seriously just sticks his head between the barbed wire and then proceeds to lift his legs one at a time right through fence. He is a pro at doing it! I'm going to try and get it on tape....it's pretty amazing. Smart cow I say. So.....the moral of the story, I'm thankful for the cute little cow, he/she brightens my day and makes me laugh.

2. I am thankful that Thaddeus is doing so great at school. He has been giving it his all and so far he still has a 4.0!!!! Finals are just about here and it is soooooo "spännande" to see what happens. I am so proud of him!

3. I am thankful that I can go over to greatgrandma's and borrow her sewing machine...plus she helps me all the time with whatever project I am trying to do. We were over there today just fixing a few holes in clothes. I am going to try and sew 3 Lucia gowns......I have a feeling that I will be needing Grandma's help :) Read more!

Thankful on a Monday

1. Today I am thankful for extra cash. Thaddeus and I donate plasma to get extra cash. It is a great thing. We make 50 dollars each a week if we do it twice! 20 if we only do it once a week. I started donating plasma in May or June and it has been going pretty well. I haven't gotten sick or anything and I only fainted once (the first time)!!!
I currently donate/sell at the Biolife center in Idaho falls. They have a daycare there and I book my appointments ahead of time on line. There is a center in Pocatello as well where Thad is probably going to start donating. They pay a little more. 30 the first time and 35 the second time...so 65 a week per person! BUT they don't have a day care, so I probably won't be going there.

2. I am also thankful for the scentsy candles. We just got a new scent and it smells sooooooo good at home now :)

3. Grilled cheese sandwiches and Mac and cheese. Affordable food that the kids LOVE! Read more!

Ear Candy!

I love this piece so much it's silly. I think I could put this on repeat and play it all day long. I know it's simple but I LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT!




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Tacksam Idag!

1.Idag är jag tacksam att jag är Svensk :)

Myspys Lucia och Första advent börjar närma sig och idag har vi övat på Luciatåg sångerna med några vänner o fikat! Sååååå Svenskt! Så roligt att titta igenom alla Lucia grejer och julpynt. Skoj skoj. Vi hann t.o.m. till affären en sväng o handlade lite, hela familjen. Thad och jag har inte mathandlat tillsammans på flera månader verkar det som eftersom vi är båda upptagna på egna håll på sistone. Vi brukar sticka o handle en utav oss så får den andre någon anna uppgift att klara av under tiden så vi inte slösar bort dyrbar tid.

2. Är också tacksam för hembakade bullar och hemmagjord blandsaft. Jag älskar mamma's blandsaft. Vi har ångkokat lite squash idag och jag ska försöka ge mig på att baka bröd med det som blev över! Spännande o se hur det går....eller om det ens blir av idag :)

Tja, Idag var en mycket bättre dag än igår, det får man nog erkänna. Read more!

Saturday

1. I am thankful that this day will end! Today I have been irritable and tired. I am glad that I usually don't have lots of these days. But MAN do they suck when they're here.

2. Also thankful that the bathroom is finally clean and laundry is done. Read more!

Thankful Friday the 13th

I worked all day today, from 8 to 8 and when I got home the computer was incapacitated....So I had to wait for Thad go get home with the lap top. He was at a concert tonight so I had to wait for quite a while.
I'm thankful for:

1. Our lap top ;)

2. Music, I just love music. Music brought Thaddeus and me together! Music makes me cry, laugh, want to sing and worried. It brings out so many feelings and can cheer me up when I'm sad. I love to play the piano a ton as well as the trumpet (although i don't play either as much as I would like) I love all kinds of music genres; classical, country, r and b, pop, oldies, tecno....you name it! I love a good song, and I LOVE to crank up the volume while I'm driving. (Something Thad does not appriciate)
Here's a song for tonight!
It won't let me embed it...so a link will have to do. Are you feeling ambitious?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aI4JLa0hbUw


3. The community center in Blackfoot! (Avery and Chelsey, do I have your attention? ) I was so happy to find out a while back that Blackfoot has a community center. A GREAT place for mom's and dad's to get together. If you're like me and you don't go to church, it's nice to know that there ARE places to socialize without having religion tied to it. The gymnastic classes that the girls are taking are at the community center. They offer really cheap yoga classes for adults as well as play time for stay at home parents to met. A bunch of mom's meet mon-thur and work out together, and it's free. We put on a work out tape and the kids play together on all of their fun equipment. For all of you facebookers out there, this is why my status has been something along the lines of "I'm sore........my muscles are in shock" hahaha. But I REALLY love it and I'm so thankful to have found the community center! The center here in Blackfoot even offers an after school program....also FREE! Go find your community center and get involved :)

4. I'm thankful that I'm not superstitious. Alas, it was a great friday the 13th! Are you superstitious? Read more!

Thursday

is tomorrow, and I will be working 8-8 so I better be out ahead of time so I don't miss my daily post. I don't think I've ever done a daily post thing before actually.
Anyway, I'll get right to it.

1. The small things that make a difference in my life.

a. lip balm (carmex)

b. M&M's (peanut, I've had a thing for them this last week...or two, maybe three weeks? Not good, but oh so good. It is definately making a difference, on my thighs :( BUT alas, they are yummy and I am thankful for them.)

c. Tampons, I know, I know don't get to personal. BUT REALLY, really, what a freaking cool invention. I am sooooooo super thankful for these tiny wonders that make my life so much easier!

2. Having my own car. It is a piece of junk and on cold mornings I'm always worried if it's going to start or not. Not to mention die on me at stop lights.....but it is nice having the freedom that owning your own car gives. Thanks to the car I can work and Thad can go to school (with his car). In a perfect world there would be public transportation and we would be saving the environment by carpooling, but this is Idaho. I wake up with cows in the front yard ALL THE TIME, I don't think there will ever be a bus going by here :) And the busses that go to ISU from town don't work with our schedule! Until we can take the bus, I love not being tied down. p.s. Thanks Stacie!

3. Tanning! I know it is slightly unhealthy but I just love being tan and getting to do it for free. And damn it, it makes me feel sexier, and I need that :)

4. I want to make sure and throw salt in there. I really dig the salt flavor. Mmmm salt!

Whoa, those were random. Read more!

Today I am thankful for

1. Sleep......... I love to sleep! Getting to bed on time is worth so much.

2. Having a place to live. I'm pretty sure that in all the years Thad and I have been married we have never been this poor. BUT, it's working out thanks to family. Having the luxury of living in Earls basement has litteraly kept us from being homeless. Hopefuly these years of Thad's schooling will whiz by fast. So far they are :) It's so nice to live in a house though. Here are just a few of the up sides we haven't had before:

a. Our own yard, not that I care if it's ours....but it's not having to worry about the kids running out and playing by themselves that it great.
b. Dishwasher! Yes, we have not had a dishwasher since we got married in May of 2002. I am loving it!
c. Three bedrooms! This is the first time the kids have their own bedrooms, not that it's that important, but I think it's nice.

3. Babysitters. We have so many babysitters here willing to help out it is bliss. If it weren't for my mom and Earl and Great grandparents we'd be in a jam. We are planning on applying for iccp either this week or next week. (ICCP- Idaho child care program; it's for poor people like us who need help to pay for day care) We should qualify, and then the family can get a break :) Thanks for all of your help!

I told you I/We have a lot to be thankful for! Read more!

Thanksgiving is just.....

around the corner. Since I have a lot and I do mean A LOT to be thankful for I'm going to list a few things everyday. These posts will not be fancy, but it will be fun to share.

What's on my Thankful list today??

1. Being alive, I love breathing and feeling, being sore, being happy and sad. Just plain being alive and healthy.
2. My girls, they are my sunshine and joy. They make me happy and they're so stinking cute I could cuddle and snuggle with them all day long.
3. A Hot Sexy, tall, smart, talented and SUPER sweet husband who is not controlling and never disrespects me. He supports me in my endevors and pulls his fair share with the girls. Oh, and did I mention he's hot? And Sexy!
4. My Job. I love my new job at the Electric Raze tanning salon and I really like my co-workers as well as my boss! It makes a WORLD of a difference when you enjoy working. Cross your fingers that my clientelle will get bigger!

So there ya have it, that's it for today! Read more!

Sankta Lucia!

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Titta William!

Hej kompis, jag har tappat fyra tänder nu......men det börjar växa in nya! Kan du se mina tre nya tänder? Jag såg bilden på dig men tanden. Ditt hår såg snyggt ut! Jag vill åka på semester till Sverige. Då kan vi leka! Vad roligt att du har fått en bebis lillasyster. Jag har börjat i skolan, och det är roligt. Jag saknar dig. Puss och Kram!
Elsa

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Cute Girls

Patiently waiting for her turn.....yes, Elsa changed her mind AGAIN. Now she's back to wanting to do gymnastics. I just can't keep up with her. I had a hunch this would happen and brought her gym clothes just incase. :) Now she has to commit for the rest of the term though since I just paid the fee. I think she will like it. Elsa just tends to start backing down when things start getting tough. Just like with the horse riding, she wanted to quit because trotting was scary. Once she got over it, she loved it.

Kajsa doing a hand stand, pointed toes and all!

Back bends are fun.

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Halloween Fun 2009

Seriously, I mean really....can there be a more fun Holiday? I just LOVE Halloween. Dressing up, trick or treating, all the candy...... It is so much fun. I wish there was one Halloween Holidy per month. Here are some pictures to witness all the fun we had last night.
Thaddette, a cross dresser or the little Angel's God mother, you choose ;)
Faces of an Angel
Faces or a Red headed Angel
Fun at Great Grandma and Grandpa's house. We got LOADS of candy there!
Wickedly cool jack-o-lanterns that Thad carved. He has some sweet talent in the pumpkin department.
After trick or treating we went home and watched a scary movie....or the best scary movie we could find. We were going to put ET on, the kids have been wanting to watch it, but the vcr didn't want to participate correctly, so we ended up watching pirates of the carribeans #2. It was plenty scary for the kids. We stuffed ourselves with candy and Elsa Angel fell asleep on the couch. Kajsa was still going strong at 12.30, we had to put her to bed or she probably would have stayed up all night.

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Last week Thaddeus

turned 29.
Wow, one year away from being a real grown up.
(Next year I want to do something big like throw a big surprise party.......... Not so sure he would appriciate it though, as in he hates lots of attention)

We don't have a whole lot of money right now and he is way too nice to turn me down when I suggested we go to Boise for his birthday. So this is what we did last week. We drove down to Boise early saturday morning. Matt and Sarah car pooled with us. Got to Chelsey's house around...geez I can't remember, maybe one in the afternoon or so. Started drooling over Brynlee, the new niece.......kept drooling. Took a shor break and went out for a nice dinner just the two of us. They had GREAT margarita's. Mmm.
Made it back to Chelsey and Austin's. Played a board game while continuing the drooling where we had left off and ate some junk food.
Next day we drooled more and then took off to see Mike and Leah and their new house. It was really cool. They have lots of room and a good location. I am excited for them. Mike hooked me up with a sweet snowboard as well.
I have to admit, I am slightly excited about winter this year. I can't say I enjoy the cold cause I HATE it, BUT this year will be my first year actually being able to do a winter sport and I am gitty (I think it's supposed to be giddy...but I don't care) about it. Matt works at Kelly Canyon and can get us in free, FREE! Snow boarding is new for Sarah too...so I am really excited. Free pass, cheap gear and someone to board with that won't make me feel like a looser.
Sooooo, moral of the story:

Happy Birthday Thaddeus, next year you're in for it!
P.s. All my friends think you are SUPER hot, and you know you are...even though you won't admit it. So HA!

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Elasta girl !

A few weeks ago Kajsa and Elsa started a gymnastics class. Turns out Kajsa is quite the little Elasta girl. She is already doing back bends by herself. (granted they are from they laying down possition....) Her balance it super good and her splits are not far from being mastered. She is loving it. These pictures are from last week. Although Elsa begged to do gymnastics instead of the cheer class she originaly started out with, today she told me she doesn't want to do gymnastics either. She doesn't want to keep riding.....hmm, I want her to find something fun to do. All she could come up with today was drums!
What?
She wants to play the drums. Thad told her that's great but if she's going to take drum lessons from him then she needs to actually listen to what he says, even though he's JUST dad! We'll see how this goes ;) Either way, I'll be keeping this site updated with Kajsa's gymnastics fun!

Goal for this week...get a pic of Kajsa doing the bridge ;)

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Coming together

I have been working on Elsa's room for quite some time now. Seems I never have enough money to get the things I want for decorating. BUT things are starting to come together ;)
We bought the bed and the book shelf (that we use instead of a dresser), at IKEA. I LOVE that place. The paint we used was left over paint that we found in the basement ;)
We did have to buy ONE bucket of white.

The little heart shaped stool we got from Kristene, she had it laying around her house and was going to toss it or get rid of it at a garage sale. We peeled a sticker off of it and painted it.
Voilá!

This AMAZING shelf was built by Cole. For those who don't know who Cole is, he is Thad's younger brother. He happens to work at a cabinet place and came and measured Elsa's bed and created this shelf to match it. He said he just threw it together in about an hour. I wish I could do stuff like that.
I LOVE IT
THANK YOU COLE!

I picked up the painting at Bed Bath and Beyond. It was kind of pricey, but I thought it was worth it since it matched so well. The little vases, marbles and flowers I just bought at wal-mart.
I was slightly upset while at wal-mart. I have noticed that plastic flowers look much worse here in the states than they do in Sweden.
It is annoying.
These were the most real looking ones I could find.

All in all, I am happy with how her room is turning out concidering I have not put a whole lot of money into it. My next goal is to sew a duvét cover and curtains to match.

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From Blonde to Brunette!

I had planned on letting my hair grow out......but right about at this middle length time I start going crazy. I've been a bit bored with my hair as well, for quite some time. I decided to be brave and try something new. Well sort of......I've had an a line cut several times before and I knew I like those a lot. But I've NEVER had hair this dark before. I went in and asked to get some "RED" highlights with DARK hair. I had Kajsa with me for the appointment and I told the hair lady I wanted Kajsa's color for the high lights along with a little blond. This is what I walked out with. But I am getting used to it and I think I actually like it a lot. Of course I had to dye my eye brows as well, they looked retarded with the dark hair.

I love how the dark brings my eyes out. It is really fun to have something new for a change. Not so excited about having to deal with it when it starts growing out.

But for the time being I love it!

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More babies......

Ida o Tomas har ÄNTLIGEN fått sin lilla tjej.

Leah var född söndagsmorgon, inte en dag för tidigt!!!!

Tror faktiskt att ida var beräknad till den 24:de september,

men gick över tills den 4:de oktober.

(Du får rätta mig om jag har fel Ida)

Vad jag saknar familjen Horvatics.

Underbara människor, fina snälla barn.

Det gör ont i hjärtat att man inte kommer

lära känna lilla Leah så som man skulle ha gjort

hade vi bott kvar i Borås.

Många stora grattis kramar till hela familjen Horvatic

VI SAKNAR ER MASSOR!

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Brynlee, my new niece!!!!

Chelsey Gale had her baby!

she was a whopping 8 lbs 11oz.

Yeah, big girl!

Due to the lack of more pictures (HINT HINT, I WANT MORE PICS NOW), this is all I have. It's from a cell phone, so it's not great quality.

Nevertheless, enjoy, she is one ADORABLE baby and I can't wait to meet her.

BIG CONGRATS TO CHELSEY AND AUSTIN

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Babies babies everywhere!

Seems that EVERYONE is having babies. First it was Kirsten then Avery, then Alexandra, Now Jodie just had her baby Cameron yesterday. Ida and Chelsey are about to pop any moment. Then Michelle and Kellie, and lets not forget Lise!
Hope I didn't forget anyone.

Sorry if I did!

I so wish that I could have been part of this baby boom.

Most of the girls who are having babies right now are having their second or third child. I'm hoping that by the time we're ready to have another one (crossing my fingers that Thad will even want more by then) that lots will be ready to have number three or four. I hear from everyone else that they just happened to get pregnant. I wish our prevention wouldn't work so damn good!

And no, we're not using abstinence :)

hahahahaha

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE ORME FAMILY!!!

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Go Cowgirl!

We went to the Eastern Idaho State Fair last week.

Morfar came with us.

We all enjoyed it.

This was the high light for me.

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Horseback riding

I think this is the last one........ Read more!

A few more camping pictures

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Camping

For anyone that doesn't know.
We left on friday evening. Due to a few car accidents and pit stops on the road we were quite delayed getting up there. We didn't have a place in mind to camp we just figured it would work out. We didn't get up to the Island park/west Yellowstone area until around 9.30 10.00 ish. So it was pitch dark. Of course the first campground we got to was full. Jam packed to be exact. So we kept on driving and were getting a little worried. But we ARE big girls (or we like to think so anyway) So we didn't call our hubbies and ask for help;)

Instead we finally found a little road (with a "road closed" sign that we ignored) and drove past a bunch of campers. We finally found a spot (with the help of head lights and flash lights) It really was dark. The good thing was it was free and we had lots of privacy. There were other campers around, just far enough that if felt like we were by ourselves out in the woods, but close enough that it wasn't scary. The other campers had a bunch of kids with them too, so it felt pretty safe. Anywho, we got set up in the dark with the help of the head lights again and went to sleep pretty fast. The next morning we went and checked the Ranch out and then went into West to clean up a bit. Then we went on our amazing ride. Then we went back into West and got the Old fashioned pics taken.....then back to camp and chilled for a bit. Then sometime around one or two in the morning we finally hit the sack. We had a great time.

If you read this whole paragraph then you deserve a medal.

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On Fire

Don't mess with Stacie. When she's in the Wild she becomes......well, just have a look for yourself. This is her showing off her "fire makin' skills"
Just look at those muscles would ya ;)

Two hot broads, enjoying the campfire.
It was so cozy sitting by the fire philosophying until the wee hours of the night.
Oh Joy for best friends!

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Purdy Horses!

We were worried that the weather was going to get rough on us. That's what the weather people had said anyway. But nope, it was PERFECT the whole time, and Purdy. Just look at them Purdy horses.
Yee-ha!

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The Ranch

was just four miles south of West Yellowstone. I don't know how many times I've passed by this place and always wanted to stop and ride. I never knew what it was called. If you're wondering it's the Diamond P Ranch. It was a great place. I highly recommend it.

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